1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to pet collars and leashes.
2. Description of the Related Art
Several attempts have previously been made to combine a pet collar with a leash to provide convenience to the pet owner. One prior design provides for a single web that acts as a collar with a long tab extending beyond the buckle that functions as a leash. The outside surface of the collar portion is covered with a first type of Velcro® material while the outside surface of the remainder of the web is covered with a second type of Velcro® material. The inside of the web extending beyond the collar portion is also covered with the first type of Velcro® material, for at least a portion of the length of the web. In this manner, the portion of the web serving as the leash may be wrapped around the portion of the web serving as the collar and become fastened around the collar by the interface between the first and second types of Velcro® material. The leash portion is generally retained about the collar after two revolutions. While this design ensures that the leash closely mates to the collar when not in use, the continuous Velcro® attachment makes it difficult to easily remove the leash from about the collar. Further, the fact that the leash is an extension of the tab extending from the buckle may cause the collar to cinch tighter about the neck of a pet when the leash is pulled, thereby causing discomfort to the pet.
Another design provides for a bag hanging from the collar wherein the leash is rolled and contained within the bag and the leash clip protrudes from a small opening in the bag to attach to the collar. The bag has a zippered opening to allow the length of the leash and handle to be removed from the bag for use. One downside to this particular design is that when not in used, the rolled-up leash within the bag swings freely from the collar and bangs into the neck of the pet, which may be annoying to the pet.
A further prior design includes a compartment mounted on the pet collar that houses a retractable leash that winds about a spring-loaded disk. The disk rotates to allow the leash to play out of the compartment and the spring causes the disk to rotate in the opposite direction to retract the leash into the compartment when the tension on the leash from the user slackens. Similar to the previously described design, a detraction from this design is the fact that the compartment holding the retracted leash swings freely from the collar and bangs into the neck of the pet, which may be annoying to the pet.
The information included in this Background section of the specification, including any references cited herein and any description or discussion thereof, is included for technical reference purposes only and is not to be regarded subject matter by which the scope of the invention is to be bound.